Spicy Samosas.

There are a bunch of things I wanted to share with you today.  A few were opinionated rants, a few were weather woes, and a few were those oh-so-often sappy Mama moments, but instead, I decided to be productive and actually share something you can use.

Because, like, who doesn't need more recipes?

Especially recipes that utilize that oh-so-inexpensive ground beef.  Love those kind!  This recipe also utilizes some delicious spices and that yogurt dough we made last week.  Nourishing and delicious.

I had a sweet friend come up to me after church and tell me that she's been delving into the recipe archives on this 'ol blog and that it's been inspiring her to really get back into her Nourishing Traditions cooking - fabulous!!!! I hope this blog, and all these danged recipes, inspire you to cook and nourish your family.  It's not just about putting food on the table.  It's about using the best tools we have available to build a healthy foundation for our children to grow with.  It's about setting our children's health as a priority.  It's about providing for our families with wholesome, nutrient-dense, natural, healing, and (often) frugal food.  Girlfriend can still do a lot with ground beef, baby.

Homemade Samosas
*While traditional samosas are made with ground lamb, I use grass-fed, local ground beef - cause that's what I have!  We're still working on the quarter steer we bought back in the summer from a nearby ranch.  At $3.30 a pound for steaks, roasts, hamburger, and soap bones, it's hard to beat!


You will need: 
 - 1/2 recipe yogurt dough
 - 1 pound of high-quality ground hamburger
 - 1 onion, minced
 - 1 tablespoon of olive oil
 - 1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa or brown rice (I prefer quinoa because it yields a lighter samosa)
 - 1/4 cup toasted almonds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, pinenuts, etc.
 - 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
 - 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
 - 1/2 teaspoon sea salt, pepper to taste
 - 1 teaspoon curry powder (optional)
 - Zest of one lemon, plus 3 tablespoons lemon juice 
 - 1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped
 - 1/4 cup feta cheese or crumbled goat cheese (optional, but delicious!)


Step One:  In a skillet, brown the hamburger until completely cooked.  Drain the excess fat out.

Step Two:  Add the minced onion in with the hamburger.  Drizzle with the olive oil.  Saute until the onion has slightly softened (3-5 minutes). 

Step Three:  Add in the cooked quinoa (or rice), toasted nuts (or seeds), cinnamon, cayenne, salt, curry powder, lemon zest, lemon juice, cilantro, and feta.  Stir to combine. 

Smelling good now, isn't it?!

Step Four:  Taste your mixture and see if it needs anymore spices.  There's no turning back after this next step....

Step Five:  Grab your pre-soaked yogurt dough and divide it into walnut-sized portions.  Then, on a floured surface, gently roll each ball of dough into a circle.  Place a scoop of the hamburger mixture smack dab in the middle of the circle.  Then (carefully!) fold the pastry into a triangle, gently pinching the edges together to create a seal.  And as you can see, mine are far from perfect.  I've come to terms with it.

And let's be honest here - you can fold this however you like.  But I believe the traditional samosa has three sides, so that's what we do - okay?!  Back off!

Step Six:  Once you've completed all your samosas, gently brush them with melted butter or olive oil.  

Step Seven:  Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 30-40 minutes or until nice and toasty.

Oh my.  Oh, my, my, my.  

They're like little morsels of protein heaven. Perfect for packing on a picnic or in lunches for work!  G-baby loves 'em.  This go-round, I served them with a roasted butternut squash soup and sauteed kale, though they'd be delicious served with a traditional tsaziki sauce.

So there ya have it.  Pretty painless, huh?  The assembling of the pastries takes the longest amount of time, but it's also easily done ahead of time.

I've gotten a bee in my bonnet these past few weeks to begin preparing and freezing food at the beginning of the month.  I'd like to be able to set aside the first Saturday of the month and devote it to preparing meals that we can eat on throughout the rest of the month - soups, spaghetti, meatloaf, taco meat, bread, etc.  This samosa-hamburger mixture is a perfect candidate for preparing and freezing ahead of time.

February will be my first attempt at organizing this cook-a-thon...

Let's hope it won't be my last.

Enjoy!

For other great meal ideas, no matter what your dietary restrictions, check out the meal planning service I use: Real Plans.

Homemade Samosas

• ½ recipe yogurt dough
• 1 pound high-quality ground hamburger
• 1 onion, minced
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 ½ cups cooked quinoa or brown rice ((I prefer quinoa because it yields a lighter samosa))
• ¼ cup toasted almonds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, pinenuts, etc.
• ¼ tsp cinnamon
• ⅛ tsp cayenne pepper
• ½ tsp sea salt, pepper to taste
• 1 tsp curry powder (optional)
• Zest of one lemon, plus 3 tablespoons lemon juice 
• ½ bunch cilantro, chopped
• ¼ cup feta cheese or crumbled goat cheese  ((optional, but delicious!))

1. In a skillet, brown the hamburger until completely cooked.  Drain the excess fat out.

2. Add the minced onion in with the hamburger.  Drizzle with the olive oil.  Saute until the onion has slightly softened (3-5 minutes). 

3. Add in the cooked quinoa (or rice), toasted nuts (or seeds), cinnamon, cayenne, salt, curry powder, lemon zest, lemon juice, cilantro, and feta.  Stir to combine. 

4. Taste your mixture and see if it needs anymore spices.  There's no turning back after this next step….

5. Grab your pre-soaked yogurt dough and divide it into walnut-sized portions.  Then, on a floured surface, gently roll each ball of dough into a circle.  Place a scoop of the hamburger mixture smack dab in the middle of the circle.  Then (carefully!) fold the pastry into a triangle, gently pinching the edges together to create a seal.  And as you can see, mine are far from perfect.  I've come to terms with it.

6. Once you've completed all your samosas, gently brush them with melted butter or olive oil.

7. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 30-40 minutes or until nice and toasty.

Yogurt Dough

• 3 ½ cups whole wheat flour ((hard or soft wheat works great – freshly ground is best!))
• 1 cup softened butter, ghee, or coconut oil ((I like butter))
• 1 cup plain yogurt ((watered down KEFIR works well, too!))
• 2 tsp sea salt

1. Whip together the butter and yogurt.  Then, add in the flour bit by bit until it's nice and combined.  Add in the sea salt and mix a little more.

   Now cover the dough and allow to soak at room temperature for 24(ish) hours.

2. That's it!  Use to your hearts delight!